NATURAL HISTORY · CATALOGUE RECORD
Montane Speckled Skink
Trachylepis punctatissima (Smith, 1849)
Source-backed taxonomic record
Accepted species in Catalogue of Life’s 11 September 2026 base release. This preserves the source classification and available supporting data; it is not a completed species monograph.
Open encyclopedia reference
Trachylepis punctatissima, commonly called the montane speckled skink or speckled rock skink, is a lizard in the skink family (Scincidae) which is widespread in southern Africa. The common and adaptable species occurs in a variety of habitat types at middle to high altitudes. It was for a time treated as a southern race of the African striped skink, T. striata.
Wikipedia contributors, Trachylepis punctatissima; see linked history · CC BY-SA 4.0 . Plain-text lead excerpt, at most 180 words; no infobox or later sections Retrieved 2026-10-05T10:09:16.195604+00:00. This reference remains separate from the taxonomic record.
Identity & source status
- Scientific name
- Trachylepis punctatissima (Smith, 1849)
- Name authority
- (Smith, 1849)
- Common name
- Montane Speckled Skink
- Rank
- species
- Accepted status
- accepted
- Kingdom
- Animalia
- Phylum
- Chordata
- Class
- Reptilia
- Order
- Squamata
- Family
- Scincidae
- Genus
- Trachylepis
- Extinction status
- Not supplied by this source
Classification family tree
Nested taxonomic groups from the source. This is not a direct-ancestor chain, a dated evolutionary tree or a phylogenetic reconstruction.
- domainEukaryota (Chatton, 1925) Whittaker & Margulis, 1978
- kingdomAnimalia
- phylumChordata
- subphylumVertebrata
- infraphylumGnathostomata
- parvphylumOsteichthyes
- megaclassTetrapoda
- classReptilia Laurenti, 1768
- orderSquamata Oppel, 1811
- suborderAutarchoglossa
- familyScincidae
- subfamilyMabuyinae
- genusTrachylepis
- speciesTrachylepis punctatissima (Smith, 1849)
Close classified relatives
These entries share the source’s genus, Trachylepis. They are not necessarily the closest relatives established by molecular evidence.
| Species | Classification | Source status |
|---|---|---|
| Adamastor SkinkTrachylepis adamastor Ceriaco, 2015 | ScincidaeChordata | Accepted speciesExtinction status not supplied |
| Senegal MabuyaTrachylepis affinis (Gray, 1839) | ScincidaeChordata | Accepted speciesExtinction status not supplied |
| Pemba Island SkinkTrachylepis albotaeniata (Boettger, 1913) | ScincidaeChordata | Accepted speciesExtinction status not supplied |
| Gold-spotted MabuyaTrachylepis aureopunctata (Grandidier, 1867) | ScincidaeChordata | Accepted speciesExtinction status not supplied |
| Bayon's MabuyaTrachylepis bayonii (Bocage, 1872) | ScincidaeChordata | Accepted speciesExtinction status not supplied |
| Boettger'sMabuyaTrachylepis boettgeri (Boulenger, 1887) | ScincidaeChordata | Accepted speciesExtinction status not supplied |
| Boulenger's MabuyaTrachylepis boulengeri (Sternfeld, 1911) | ScincidaeChordata | Accepted speciesExtinction status not supplied |
| Cape SkinkTrachylepis capensis (Gray, 1831) | ScincidaeChordata | Accepted speciesExtinction status not supplied |
| Casuarina Island SkinkTrachylepis casuarinae (Broadley, 1974) | ScincidaeChordata | Accepted speciesExtinction status not supplied |
| Eastern Sand SkinkTrachylepis depressa (Peters, 1854) | ScincidaeChordata | Accepted speciesExtinction status not supplied |
| Trachylepis dumasi (Nussbaum & Raxworthy, 1995) | ScincidaeChordata | Accepted speciesExtinction status not supplied |
| African Five-lined SkinkTrachylepis quinquetaeniata (Lichtenstein, 1823) | ScincidaeChordata | Accepted speciesExtinction status not supplied |
Names & synonyms
Names explicitly linked to this accepted taxon in the source. Synonymy can change with revision.
| Recorded name | Source status |
|---|---|
| Euprepes sunderalli Smith, 1849 Smith, 1849 | synonym |
| Euprepes (Euprepis) gruetzneri Peters, 1869 Peters, 1869 | synonym |
| Mabuya striata Fitzsimons, 1943 Fitzsimons, 1943 | ambiguous synonym |
Documented distribution
Source distribution statements, not a complete range map. A listed locality is not necessarily a place of origin.
Source literature & publication evidence
References attached to this source record, including nomenclatural citations where supplied. This is a selected bibliography; abbreviated citations remain in the source’s form.
- https://reptile-database.reptarium.cz/species?genus=Trachylepis&species=punctatissima Source fields: Taxon.tsv dwc:namePublishedIn, Taxon.tsv dcterms:references
Origins, evidence & remaining research
Name authority and publication references document nomenclature where the source supplies it. They do not establish evolutionary origins or the earliest fossil occurrence.
Specimen-level evidence, morphology, ecological research, phylogenetic studies, a comprehensive bibliography and a located literary passage have not yet been compiled for this record. A suitable sourced image remains to be added.
Dataset citation & attribution
This exact taxon in ChecklistBank · Catalogue of Life 2026-09-11
Catalogue of Life 2026-09-11; dataset 316321; doi:10.48580/dgz5n. https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/ . Retrieved 5 October 2026.
Stable key: col:57RF5. Classification follows source parent identifiers. English common names may vary by region.